Cincinnati

Senate on Vine Street in Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood has been one of the city’s most celebrated pub and gourmet hot dog destinations since it opened, building a menu around creative, over-the-top hot dog builds that take the humble street food format and apply the same quality ingredients and creative thinking that a serious restaurant kitchen

Island Frydays has been bringing the jerk chicken, oxtail, and the island comfort food traditions of Jamaica to Cincinnati since it opened, earning a devoted Ohio following in a city with very little access to authentic Jamaican cooking. It appeared in Season 21, Episode 4 of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, “Worldwide Flavorfest,” which aired September

Melt Eclectic Cafe on Hamilton Avenue in Cincinnati’s Northside neighborhood has been a city cafe institution since it opened, building a menu around the eclectic scratch-made comfort food, creative sandwiches, and the from-scratch cafe plates that earn a Cincinnati neighborhood restaurant its loyal following in a community that values independent food culture over chain options.

Blue Ash Chili on Kenwood Road has been serving Cincinnati-style chili since 1969, which means it has been serving a style of chili that most of the country doesn’t recognize as chili — Greek-spiced, cinnamon-forward, served over spaghetti or as a coney dog — for over 50 years. It appeared in Season 9, Episode 7